Social Rights

The European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) has published its decision on the merits in Comisiones Obreras de Castilla y León (CCOO CyL) and Unión General de Trabajadores de Castilla y León (UGT CyL) v. Spain, Complaint No. 228/2023, adopted on 17 March 2026.

The complaint, registered on 6 June 2023, alleged that the Government of the Autonomous Community of Castilla y León had withheld or reduced funding for services provided by trade union organisations to vulnerable groups of workers, as well as for the institutional participation of trade union organisations in various regional bodies and councils. The complainant organisations further argued that the actions and omissions of the Regional Government had weakened social dialogue in Castilla y León.

In its decision, the Committee examined these measures primarily from the standpoint of Article 6§1 of the European Social Charter, which requires States Parties to promote joint consultation between workers and employers. The Committee recalled that effective social dialogue constitutes a fundamental element of democratic governance in labour relations and that States remain responsible under the Charter for actions undertaken by regional and local authorities.

The Committee noted that the Regional Government's contested actions had either been declared unlawful by domestic courts or reversed following a political reconfiguration that took place in 2025, resulting in the full restoration of social dialogue. In particular, the Regional Government reconvened the Social Dialogue Council, restored funding for the institutional participation of the trade union organisations and other related activities, and ensured the continued operation of the Regional Labour Relations Service (SERLA Foundation). The Committee therefore concluded that the majority of the alleged violations raised in the initial complaint had been remedied and consequently required no further examination.

The Committee dismissed the remaining allegations concerning the residual loss of trust arising from these developments and the lasting damage caused to social dialogue at the regional level, finding them to be unsubstantiated or largely hypothetical.

The Committee therefore found that there had been no violation of Article 6§1 of the Charter.